Repetitive behaviors are acquired through practice and, under normal conditions, allow motor or cognitive processes to be efficiently automated in everyday life. However, a loss of control in the regulation of these processes can lead to their pathological overexpression. These…  Continue reading →

When a sound predicts the potential arrival of a reinforcer, the subject learns the time at which that reinforcer may arrive or is available. The amygdala, and in particular its basolateral (BLA) part is critical for the emotional/motivational aspect of…  Continue reading →

Psychiatric disorders including depression, anxiety and stress vulnerability represent main disabling conditions for individual’s life. Recent studies suggest that many aspects of these pathologies could have an early origin during childhood. Our goal is to investigate how maladaptive neurodevelopmental mechanisms…  Continue reading →

Large-scale neural recordings provide an opportunity to better understand how the brain implements critical behavioral computations related to goal-directed learning. In this seminar, I will argue that re-visiting our understanding of the shape of the learning curve and its underlying…  Continue reading →

Theta sequences and phase precession shape hippocampal activity and are considered key underpinnings of memory formation. Theta sequences are sweeps of spikes from multiple cells, tracing trajectories from past to future. Phase precession is the correlation between theta firing phase…  Continue reading →

Genetic and environmental factors increase autism spectrum disorder (ASD) incidence and this has led to the generation of corresponding animal models, with some showing strong construct and face validity. In this line, we have recently published a series of several studies on ASD environmental…  Continue reading →

In this presentation, I will describe our recent work on a family of proteins with important roles in excitatory synapse development and maintenance. These proteins have been identified as substrates of the enzyme BACE1, a potential therapeutic target in Alzheimer’s…  Continue reading →

COQ8A-Ataxia is a rare form of neurodegenerative disorder due to mutations in the COQ8A gene. The encoded mitochondrial protein is involved in the regulation of Coenzyme Q10 biosynthesis. Previous studies on the constitutive Coq8a-/- mice indicated specific alterations of cerebellar…  Continue reading →

Upon infection, bacterial compounds, and the pro-inflammatory cytokines they elicit, induce a complex response coordinated by the brain and known as “sickness behavior”. This response induces stereotyped behavioral changes (reduced locomotion and food intake, social avoidance), metabolic adjustments (fever, glycemia),…  Continue reading →